Private money lending - general

Clay Sparkman
I am frequently asked by private money investors: “… so how do we get started investing in private money loans?” You know, there is no simple answer to this question. I tell them that it is kind of like dating. If we are going to do this as an investor/broker team, then they need to [...]

Clay Sparkman
This book strikes me as a must read for anyone in the lending business. I have not read it yet, but I intend to get started now. Have any of you read it, and if so, what was your take away?
Here
The Unbanking of America: How the New Middle Class Survives
Lisa Servon. Houghton Mifflin [...]

Clay Sparkman
I posted this article in 2011, and am sad to say that I haven’t come across much in the way of new resources since. I’m going to re-post, with a few small changes, and please let me know if you know of any useful resources available to private money professionals.

Clay Sparkman
Good article in the Los Angeles Times:
Lending money to pot businesses is a high-risk move: ‘This is not for the faint of heart’
A few years back, this was starting to look like a pretty good place to consider investing your private money. Several things were favorable: (1) The general trend nationwide was clearly toward [...]

S. Clay Sparkman
TNG (The Norris Group) published the following FAQ on their site. I thought it might be fun to go through this and see where I agree and perhaps disagree, and offer my annotations (in red).
Frequently Asked Questions About Trust Deed Investing
1. What is a trust deed investor?
A trust deed investor is a person [...]

Clay Sparkman
I first wrote and published this piece in its original form in September of 2009. I am of the firm belief that the key to success (defined as: having fun and maximizing your return, two closely correlated phenomena), is rigorous and comprehensive vetting of the loan proposal. If you do this right, the rest [...]

Clay Sparkman
I thought that this set of blog posts, A Guide For Private Money Lenders (in four parts), by Thad Merrill, was both interesting and informative, and so I thought I’d share them with you. (Ever vigilant: I’m combing the web for you.)

Clay Sparkman
I first posted this article in August of 2009. That was right about when I was just getting started with the blog. It is hard to believe that it has been nearly seven years now. At any rate, I feel that this article deserves a second look (or a first look, if you are [...]

Clay Sparkman
I originally published this article in September of 2009 on this blog.
I’m going to make a list today of twenty-five important questions that I believe an investor must ask prior to funding any private money loan transaction. I’m not going to elaborate much on each particular item here, but will drill down on each [...]

Clay Sparkman
This is an interesting blog post.
http://www.mymoneyblog.com/realty-mogul-review.html
It tells about a new site where you can go to make $5k private money fractional loans automatically, without the bother of actually dealing with a broker, borrower, or such. Apparently you don’t have to even bother making any decisions about the investment. That might be nice, except …!
Well [...]

Clay Sparkman
This item was originally posted on this site on 4/30/10. I had a sense that it might be relevant once again, and so I have rewritten it slightly and am posting here again. I hope you find it useful.
Most private money investors choose to work with brokers. However it is a decision that each [...]

S. Clay Sparkman
Every now and then I like to present one of the loans that we have placed or are in the process of placing, so that blog readers can see (a) the types of loans that we are placing, and (b) how we feel that loans should be presented. Keep in mind that this [...]

Clay Sparkman
I can’t tell you how many times I have been asked by prospective private money investors, “Where do I go to learn more about this? Where are the books? Where are the articles? where are the websites”
I have generally had to shrug my shoulders and say, “Uh …. you know, I really [...]

Clay Sparkman
I try to update and publish this FAQ every once in awhile, as it is a handy guide to better understanding the market for private money loans in general–and more particularly, how we operate here at FFS. It is written more with brokers and borrowers in mind, but the information here should [...]

Clay Sparkman
(Note: I posted the following on my broker blog recently. It is oriented to toward brokers, but at the same time, I think it would be quite useful to those trying to get a handle on investing in private money loans and trying to better understand the process.)
Private money is often [...]

Clay Sparkman
We’ve been getting quite a few calls from new investors lately who are interested in investing in trust deed secured loans. This makes a certain amount of sense to me, as a number of factors are lining up to enhance the attractiveness of this type of investing. The factors I have in mind include [...]

Clay Sparkman
As you all know, sometimes we have to be creative to get loans done in this market. One of the most critical aspects of any loan (as you well know) is the Loan to Value ratio, and there are often options for reducing the LTV to make the deal more attractive.
For purchases, the seller [...]

Clay Sparkman
One of my long term objectives with this blog is to eventually walk with you through all of the private money loan processes and procedures, from the moment of conception until death (death of course not being a bad thing in my chosen metaphor, but simply meaning loan payoff, workout, or foreclosure).
This post deals [...]

Clay Sparkman
Okay, I don’t know about you, but whenever I read news about some new development in the real estate market, my first instinct is to say, “What does this mean to me?” Hey I’m not proud of it, but that’s just how I’m wired.
This past two weeks we read that:
(1) GMAC and JPMorgan Chase [...]

Guest post by Brian Blum, Operating Manager, Maverick Structures LLC
I’m a real estate investor. I see opportunities in buildings – and in numbers, and I use those opportunities to create income and equity. What I do benefits society, but I’m not going to lie to you – I am driven to do it for my [...]

Clay Sparkman
We are always looking for the sweet spot these days in the real estate market. And by sweet spot, I mean that realm of investments that are on balance less risky and more likely to turn a profit in what is otherwise a jaded real estate market.
I have gone on a bit in my [...]

Clay Sparkman
Most private money investors choose to work with brokers. However it is a decision that each private money investor must make independently and with great care—to use or not to use a broker.
The essence of the matter I think is this. If you want a full-time job (and some investors certainly do) then you [...]

Clay Sparkman
I am frequently asked by private money investors: “… so how do we get started investing in private money loans?” You know, there is no simple answer to this question. I tell them that it is kind of like dating. If we are going to do this as an investor/broker team, then they need [...]

Clay Sparkman
The national economy is in a state of confusion and the local economy is in a state of confusion. So what does this mean for the market for investing in trust deed based loans?
Well of course nobody really knows–and this is just my take on it–but here goes: First of all, let’s talk briefly [...]

Clay Sparkman
I realized early on that one of my greatest challenges in the private money lending business was to educate brokers, borrowers, and ultimately lenders regarding private money lending–what it is and when and how and when it should be used. So many people know so little about it, and those who think they know [...]

Clay Sparkman
Okay, first the ten mistakes you should never make:
(1) Never close a loan without title insurance.
(2) Never close a loan on property that has valuable structures without a valid hazard insurance policy in effect listing you or your entity as loss payee.
(3) Never close a loan leaving property taxes unpaid (unless you are fully [...]

Clay Sparkman
First off, I’d like to point you to a list of 37 private money investment tips posted by Brad Evans of Brad Evans Real Estate Loans. This list has been circulating on the net for quite a few years now. It is one of the more thoughtful comprehensive items that I have come across [...]

Clay Sparkman
I finished Part II with a brief mention of something I quite like about the trust deed system: that is, the option (generally available) to foreclose judicially.
Before moving on, I’d like to offer you a crude little decision tree which may guide investors in making the decision whether to foreclose a given trust deed [...]

Clay Sparkman
In Part I, I began a discussion of my gripes and likes regarding the private money lending business and various industry related matters, items, and issues. I allowed myself to amble a bit far afield and concluded by mentioning a book about the legal profession which I personally found to be informing and entertaining. [...]

Clay Sparkman
I thought it would be kind of fun, and hopefully informative, to write a piece about my likes and gripes regarding the business of private money lending. In other words, these are the things that tend to kick start my emotions and get me going. There is a bit of free association going on [...]

Clay Sparkman
I’m going to make a list today of twenty-five important questions that I believe an investor must ask prior to funding any private money loan transaction. I’m not going to elaborate much on each particular item here, but will drill down on each of the individual items in future posts. For the sake [...]

As I continue my search for resources that might be useful to those who invest in real estate secured loans, I become increasingly convinced that our particular niche field is somewhat of an intellectual/informational wasteland. Every time I stumble upon an article or site that looks like it might be of interest, it [...]

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About

This blog deals with all aspects of investing in private money loans and hard money loans secured by trust deeds and real property, including underwriting, risk assessment, loan servicing, and workout/recovery.

Bio

I am Vice President of Fairfield Financial, and I have been coordinating private money loan transactions since 1992. I hold an MBA degree from Portland State University and a BS in Economics and Computer Science from the University of Oregon. I have two active blogs: The Private Money Investor and The Private Money Broker.